In Sickness
by Rinkinkirs
Summary: Edward gets a cold. Human AU, Edward/Jasper.


**Notes:** This was lying around in my OneNote. Written for my friend E, for being a good girl and finishing her assignment on time. Prompt: _Edward/Jasper, sickness(as in a cold, so it could be an alternate universe), scarf, shower and kinky_. I fail at kink.

For whoever asked why I would make them gay: Jasper is a lot less annoying than Bella, and while I'm not particularly devoted to Twilight slash, my friend asked for it. :)

Clearly I'm not used to this archive anymore, since I forget to be obvious about it: **gay fiction** ahead, guys. Don't read it if you don't like it.

* * *

Jasper sat down on the floor and leaned against the doorframe, watching him with a tiny smile, any interest tempered by how miserable Edward looked.

"Falling over any time soon?" Jasper said, head tilting back to rest against the wood as he fiddled with a loose string along the seam of his jeans.

"I'm fine," Edward's voice rasped, glaring in Jasper's general direction. It would have been more effective if he hadn't been naked and supporting himself with a hand on the shower's glass walls, but his balance was a little compromised.

Jasper smiled the way he did when he thought he knew better, but was feeling indulgent enough not to point it out. Edward sighed tiredly; he couldn't spare the energy for annoyance.

"You are very amusing when you get sick," Jasper told him.

"Fuck you too," Edward moaned pathetically, dragging a hand through his hair.

Jasper tilted his head. "Another day, perhaps," he said. Edward could practically hear the smile in his voice. "There's no need to encourage a bacterial invasion."

Edward was about to insist that Jasper deserved it for the pounding headache he had inflicted on him by insisting to _talk_, but kept his tongue with the remembered promise of chicken soup. Jasper wasn't much of a chef, but their foster mother was easily persuaded, especially when they brought out the 'I'm just a pathetic foster child' routine. Edward would have found her weak if not for the fact that they were all helpless when confronted with her hopeful smile.

"Come on, princess, can't stay in there all day," Jasper said.

Edward was beginning to feel like a prune, but the water was cool on his skin and he felt more clearheaded than he had been for a week.

It didn't have anything to do with not being able to move without falling over.

"Come on," Jasper's voice said into his ear, a hand reaching out around him to turn off the water. Edward almost lost his balance, but Jasper's arms went around his waist, strong and solid when even his mind felt like he was under water and caught in merciless currents. He snuggled into the embrace, legs weak and rubbery, and Jasper bit out of a string of swears that would have made Esme withdraw dessert if she heard.

"You're heavier than you look," Jasper muttered, words washing across Edward's ear. The moisture in his hair and skin cooled, and he shivered.

"You're… stupid," Edward muttered sullenly, imagination failing him just like his body was.  
Jasper chuckled.

After finally wrangling Edward down to sit on the towel-covered toilet seat, he kneeled down in front of him and grabbed another towel to ruffle Edward's hair dry. Edward couldn't even manage to feel horror at the prospect of how his hair would look.

Jasper lifted the towel away from his eyes and looked up at him. "You really are feeling horrible, aren't you?" he said softly. It wasn't a question Edward deigned to answer, so after a brief pause Jasper continued. Edward was well enough to regret the loss of all the shower sex they could be having, but not enough to be frustrated about it.

"I have to go change," Jasper said as he stood; Edward hadn't noticed his clothes getting wet, but he supposed it made sense in some distant reality where things weren't so goddamn hazy.

He'd hardly noticed he was alone until Jasper was back, this time in a t-shirt and track pants. He was already half asleep by the time he was dressed and on the living room couch, and couldn't remember getting down the stairs.

.

It had started with a sneeze.

Esme had stopped in her tracks before she rushed off to the hallway closet, and got back with a plethora of scarves, hats and mittens he stubbornly refused to wear, at which point she had given him a stern look and he ended up with a blue scarf that was vaguely tolerable. Jasper sat at the other end of the sofa, calm and unruffled as he watched Esme flit to and fro, but Edward could see the way his mouth twitched, threatening to smile.

He indulged Esme's overbearing concern, pointedly wrapping the scarf around his neck even though it was just September and he hardly ever got sick.

Jasper grinned at him as they walked through the halls, followed by not-so-clandestine stares. Edward elbowed him, but couldn't help smiling back. The blue scarf, while tolerable, was more frilly than he'd prefer.

All the things he endured for Esme's sake, he thought fondly. He wouldn't want it any other way.

"Hey, Eddy!" Emmett's boisterous voice drew even more looks. "I see you've discovered your feminine side," he said, grinning like the devil he was.

Edward muttered something derogatory as he contemplated giving him the finger, undignified though it was.

"Your ears are red," Jasper observed.

Edward could feel the red rising up his neck, not knowing why Jasper's statement was so embarrassing. It wasn't like Emmett had room to talk; he was wearing the most ridiculous shirt Edward had seen on him so far, which said a whole lot.

"We've met your feminine side," he said, leaving the rest unspoken. _Her name is Rosalie and she's a conniving bitch._

Jasper sent him a disapproving glance, but seemed otherwise unruffled. "Your sulk is showing," he said. "It's unattractive."

"You're unattractive," Edward muttered, knowing it was a bad retort but not having the energy to come up with something better.

Emmet frowned. "No, Jasper's right," he said. "Your sulk really is showing."

"Didn't sleep well last night." Which was ironic, considering how tired he'd been, sure he'd fall asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. Somewhere around three a.m. he'd snuck out of his room and crawled into bed with Jasper, only to be kicked awake every thirty minutes or so.

Their first class crawled by at the speed of a snail, and yet, Edward couldn't remember what it was about the moment the bell rang.

He spent the rest of the day feeling tired, putting his polyphones over his ears without music to have an excuse not to talk to anyone. Jasper knew; he'd borrowed his iPod the day before and hadn't turned it back yet, but didn't call him on it, probably recognising the strain around his eyes as one of his periodic headaches. He vowed to conk out on pain killers or something that night, if he couldn't pilfer some strong sleeping pills from Carlisle's cabinet.

Jasper drew him aside during recess and asked him if he was all right.

"Sure," he muttered, sniffling a little.

He felt progressively worse, but wasn't really concerned about it until the rasping coughs started.

"I'm driving you home," Jasper said.

Edward didn't disagree.

.

"I'm fine," Edward said. "Really."

Jasper crossed his arms and lifted an eyebrow.

"Honestly."

"You're just saying that because you want to have sex," Jasper said.

"Well…" Edward floundered, but couldn't fault his conclusion. "Yes?" He tried not sounding pathetically needy, but his voice came out too squeaky to tell. He hated being sick. Sick people weren't seductive, even when they technically weren't sick anymore.

"You still look like crap," Jasper said pointedly.

Edward bristled. "Thanks for the vote of confidence," he muttered.

Jasper sat down beside him on the bed. "I'm not insulting your stellar appearance."

"Shut up," he muttered.

"Fine."

Edward looked at him, eyebrows lifting on their own accord. "Fine?"

"Yeah."

"Just like that."

Jasper leaned closer and bit his neck.

"Ouch?"

"Bad ouch?"

Edward tilted his head, coincidentally giving Jasper more room. "No," he said, a tiny smile playing around the edges of his mouth. "Definitely good ouch."

Jasper huffed and manhandled Edward further up the bed, settling in behind him as his hand crept below the hem of his pants.

"Not a word," he said.

Edward turned his head and scowled, but didn't say anything. Jasper kissed him softly, then again, letting his tongue trace Edward's bottom lip even though it was dry and cracked, and kissed further down his neck.

Edward tried to stifle a moan.

"Not a word," Jasper muttered.

.

Edward woke when Jasper coughed into his neck.

"You all right?" he muttered sleepily, drawing Jasper's arms tighter around his waist.

"No," Jasper muttered back, sniffling. "And you won't be ben I'm drew wid you."

Edward grinned.


End file.
